Sports Mole previews Wednesday’s Champions League clash between Dynamo Kyiv and Benfica, including predictions, team news and possible line-ups.
DynamoKiev and Benfica face off at the municipal stadium Wladyslaw Krol in the first leg of their Champions League playoff matchup on Wednesday.
Both teams have enjoyed a fine qualifying campaign and will be looking to continue in the same vein as they are just 180 minutes away from a place in the group stages of the European tournament.
Match Preview
© Reuters
Dynamo Kyiv continued their quest for a return to Europe’s premier club competition as they saw the threat of a resilient Sturm Graz side with a 3-1 aggregate win.
After claiming a 1-0 first-leg win at the Wladyslaw Krol Municipal Stadium on August 3, Bilo-syni traveled to Austria six days later where they came from behind to claim a 2-1 victory in extra time against the Bundesliga team.
Rasmus Winther Hojlund struck in the 27th minute to level things up and force extra time as Sturm Graz looked to make a memorable comeback but extra-time goals from Kostiantyn Vivcharenko and Viktor Tsygankov broke the hearts of home fans as the Ukrainians claimed a 3-1 aggregate victory.
Dynamo Kyiv have now enjoyed an unbeaten campaign in the Champions League qualifiers, earning one draw and three wins while scoring five goals and dispatching two in their four outings.
Their next mission is the challenge of taking on a endemic Benfica side who are unbeaten in each of their previous four encounters, winning three and drawing one since 2016.
© Reuters
Roger SchmidtThe men picked up two wins in their opening two games of the 2022-23 Primeira Liga campaign last time out when they narrowly edged out Casa Pia 1-0 at Leiria Municipal Stadium.
In a game where Nicolas Otamendi received a late red card, the Portuguese striker Goncalo Ramos continued his searing form in front of goal as his 58th-minute strike was enough to separate the teams on the final whistle.
Prior to that, Benfica cruised to a 3-1 victory over Midtjylland in the second leg of their Champions League third qualifying round clash on August 9 to claim an emphatic 7-2 win over the Danish side.
The 2018-19 Portuguese champions head into Wednesday’s fixture on a blistering 10-game winning streak in all competitions, dating back to a 1-0 loss to Porto when the sides met in May.
Aguias is also unbeaten in his last seven away games, holding a 3-3 draw with Liverpool in the second leg of last season’s Champions League quarter-finals on April 13 before claiming six wins in of their next six outings.
Dynamo Kyiv Champions League form:
Dynamo kyiv form (all competitions):
Benfica Champions League form:
Benfica form (all competitions):
Team News
© Reuters
Dynamo Kyiv will be without the duo of Denys Garmasch and Sergiy Sydorchukwho will both serve one-match bans after crossing the yellow card threshold with their bookings against Sturm Graz last time out.
On the injury front, the manager Mircea Lucescu will not be able to call on the services of the 29-year-old defender Volodymyr Kostevichwho has been out of action since last December due to a long injury.
Twenty-two-year-old striker Vladyslav Supryaga is also set to miss his sixth game in a row after suffering a hip injury in July’s 2-1 friendly loss to Royal Antwerp.
Meanwhile, Benfica will take to the pitch without the Brazilian defender’s experience Lucas Verissimowho continues his long journey to full fitness after suffering a serious knee injury last November.
Compatriot João Victorwho recently signed with Corinthians, is still awaiting his debut as the defender is currently recovering from a muscle injury he suffered in July.
With his winner against Casa Pia last time out, Ramos has now been involved in 12 goals and assists in his last 11 games for club and county and the 21-year-old striker is set to lead the attack once again. visiting team.
Possible starting line-up of Dynamo Kyiv:
Bushchan; Kedziora, Zabarnyi, Syrota, Dubinchak; Shaparenko, Andriyevskiy, Shepeliev; Buyalskyi, Tsygankov, Besedin
Benfica’s possible starting line-up:
Vlachodimos; Gilberto, Otamendi, Morato, Grimaldo; Chiquinho, Fernandez, Luis, Goncalves; Ramos, Silva
We say: Dynamo Kyiv 1-2 Benfica
With just 180 minutes separating Dynamo Kyiv and Benfica from a place in the Champions League group stages, we expect a thrilling competition as both sides battle it out in search of a vital game win. go. The Portuguese team are heading towards the tie firing on all cylinders and we support them to maintain their great run and see the home team.
For a data analysis of the most likely outcomes, scores and more for this match, please click here.
Comments are closed.